3 Interesting Ideas I’m Pondering This Week

This type of posts is inspired by Tim Ferriss’ 5-Bullet Friday. That’s an email he sends to subscribers every Friday with a list of the things he enjoyed and did during the week (an article he read, a useful purchase he made, something interesting he watched and so on). I like it a lot and find it inspiring and helpful. And considering that I’m reading, thinking about and trying to improve different things every week, I decided to do the same.It’s published on Sunday. You can read all similar posts here.

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Traveling helps you grow spiritually.

The benefits of traveling go beyond what comes to mind first.

It’s the best way to get out of your comfort zone physically, but it’s also super beneficial to the mind and soul. And from what I’ve seen, the most valuable learning experiences and adventures in life are things that connect mind, body and soul.

Not everyone can make himself get out of his country, though. It’s more than just booking a trip and getting on the plane.

And I’m not talking about luxury travel here. No expensive hotels, restaurants or a lot of shopping.

I’m talking about experiencing culture shock and letting it help you grow and change on the inside. This infographic pretty much says it all.

Traveling means putting yourself in an unfamiliar environment, having to deal with new things, challenging yourself, seeing and feeling new emotions. It gives you knowledge and experience by doing stuff like communicating with the locals, trying the food, hearing a different language maybe, noticing different habits and etiquette.

All that combined moves your brain. You learn things, expand your horizons and take part in interesting activities.

And if you travel long enough and to different places, you then find yourself being okay with discomfort, getting used to new cultures faster, adapting to changes easily.

And once you get back to real life, these become powerful assets.

I’m thinking a lot about traveling lately. It’s even more practical and much needed for someone like me who’s sometimes an introvert and feels very comfortable with the way things are. Because comfort in this case means that nothing new is happening and I’m not challenging myself. Which leads to no progress.

And because I want to see myself growing and changing all the time, I have to travel more. Moreover, there’s nothing stopping me from doing that at this point. I’m done with university, don’t have a serious relationship, am working for myself and remotely. So it’s the perfect time to explore other countries.

I’ve got a trip around Europe in the beginning of April during which I’ll visit some of my favorite countries, and will also cross 2 more off the list – Sweden and Denmark. I’ve been meaning to visit Scandinavia for a long time now as I’m familiar with their culture and have friends there. So now’s the chance. Even though it will be for a short time.
Then comes July when I’ll go to the Netherlands and this will be my first location independent project. I’ll come to some important conclusions about my life so far, myself and my future after that.

However, the real spiritual growth happens when one visits Thailand, or Indonesia, or Japan, or any other country that’s completely different in every aspect. I’ll do that too eventually. But not now.

Using compassion to improve relationships.

I believe compassion is a universal language. And everyone – regardless of his behavior – is capable of it and seeks it one way or another.

I’m trying to make it a habit now. It’s difficult.

My goal is to show compassion to people – from family to random people – and thus not get angry, annoyed or else that will be bad for both of us.

I’m using it both in personal life and in business.

I always try to imagine what the other person might be going through, to explain to myself why he does what he does (when it’s not the right thing according to me) and to thus understand him and even feel sorry for him.

Truth is everyone’s fighting a battle. A big one – with his own demons.
And I try to be compassionate knowing how hard it might be.

So far that little trick has saved me many arguments and I’ve just felt in peace and without the need to even say anything. I even smile back to the person knowing he’s doing his best, although it may be absolutely wrong and others are hurt.

Try that. It helps.

House Sitting

I’m exploring more options now in terms of my accommodation when moving to Holland for a month this summer.
The most popular and safe thing to do is to just book something I like through AirBnB, of course. But there’s more out there so I had to do my research, and will keep doing it.

Now that I do my best for every dollar I make, I value money more. And believe it can often be invested into something more profitable and enjoyable.

So in this case, instead of giving a few hundred dollars for monthly expenses, plus a high tax for the site, all this can be used for trying out different things in the country and getting to visit every city I haven’t been to there.

So how will I save that money and still have accommodation?

I may turn to house sitting if something tempting comes up and me and the owner answer each other’s expectations.
It’s when people go on a long holiday or else, and want someone to look after their house and pets. That’s when travelers come and it becomes a win-win situation.